Jackie

Many of us think we are good stewards of our resources and Jacqueline was no different. She thought she was budgeting wisely. She thought she was stretching her dollars to their best effect. But she never had enough dollars.

To be fair - her rent was really high – nearly half her monthly pay. Few families could get ahead financially in that scenario and as a single mother of a teenaged daughter Jackie really struggled to make ends meet. To compound the issue, Jackie lived in a not-so-nice neighborhood, so she constantly worried about the negative influences her daughter saw every day. When Jackie learned about Habitat Cabarrus through a member of her church she decided to apply. Jackie hoped Habitat would provide an opportunity to build a new life.

Jackie and her daughter (NiShara) were complete novices to construction zones. They were quite nervous about using the different tools and working on-site. But they asked lots of questions, learned what to do, and are now confident in their abilities.

One of the biggest eye-openers for Jackie and NiShara were the Financial Peace classes. They were energized to learn the right ways to save money. Mother and daughter really embraced the Want vs. Need lessons. They work hard to prioritize their expenditures. Jackie says NiShara has a better understanding of how much “things” actually cost now. NiShara holds down a part-time job while she completes high school and contributes by purchasing many of her own clothes and personal items. Both women set financial goals to help them build for future success.

Jackie and NiShara’s home will be the 2017 Collegiate Challenge house. They can’t wait to use their construction skills on their own home.